#but joesara…. joesara!!!!! <3 absolutely my favorite.

[ultimaid]

sigh. i’m sorry for shipping the “extremely basic m/f pair that’s probably better platonic” and wanting them to kiss on the mouth. as if it’s my fault. 🙄

[sillyguyhotline]

the joe character ask

i’ve been responding to the prompts so slowly bc school but here’s the one for joe that i didn’t put in the previous ask 

Joe

Why I Like Him-

Honestly, this shouldn’t even be a question at this point, he’s hands down my favorite character. I adore the dynamic that he has with Sara, I adore his cheerful and peppy personality, and I adore the fact that he still undergoes realistic questioning of his morals despite being such a kind and generally “good person.” And, as I’ve stated many times before, I think that his death came at the perfect time to impact Sara’s development while also letting him go through a character arc and become a significant enough character for his death to hurt. I,,, I love him so much dhfbhdfbd

Why I Don’t-

There isn’t really a lot here; like I’ve said, he’s just generally a really good character! If I had to pick something, though, I’d say that there are a lot of unresolved suspicions surrounding him from the get-go and I don’t like that they haven’t been resolved yet. Considering how cheerful and trusting he is otherwise, he’s oddly suspicious of Keiji and the others right from the beginning, and is the first to suggest the possibility of a traitor- rather uncharacteristic for what we know of him. Was it just part of his character arc to make him dying due to the Sacrifice card even more sympathetic, or is there more to him? I, personally, really want the “Mr. Policeman is Joe’s dad” theory to be true, so I’m hoping that if we get that reveal, his initial suspicions will tie into that. I’ll be sort of disappointed if they continue to go unresolved.

Favorite Scene-

Honestly, I’ve always adored the scene where Joe and Sara walk home together. In only around 5 minutes, Nankidai is able to characterize them both perfectly (especially Joe), to portray them as close friends who enjoy teasing each other, and to establish that they’re still good friends even though Joe is dating Ryoko. Especially when you go back and play through the game without the initial worry of whether Joe is going to betray you, it’s easy to realize how genuinely sweet and well-written that scene is. I love it a lot :))

Favorite Line-

Because I’m very shitty at remembering lines, I’ll go with the classic one: “I love ya, Sara! You’re my best friend!” I also thought his AI’s line of “I’ll always follow you- just like a dog!” is a pretty funny one. 

Favorite Outfit-

I probably won’t include this with everyone else’s but I just want to take a minute to appreciate Joe’s gaudy-ass outfit. He has style. Period. Those earrings? That hairclip? Absolutely iconic, there’s a reason Sara cries every time she sees them after 1-2. 

OTP-

LMAO are you kidding me?? Joesara all the way. I also like the concept of Ryojoesara, but I just love their dynamic in-game and how close they are to each other, romantic or platonic. And… I just honestly adore the idea of the two of them together! I love the friends to lovers trope, and their personalities complement each other so well! They’re very sweet.

Brotp-

For this, I’d have to choose between either Gin or Shin. Joe leaning into the “big bro Joe” assignment is so precious, and I’ve always been a sucker for their little exchange where Gin promises to kick his ass in Mario Kart or something. I think he’d make a great big brother to Gin; they could bond over their love of dogs :) I’ve also seen a lot of Nankidai’s sketches of Joe and Shin together, and honestly I think they’d make for great friends- Joe could help pull Shin out of his “loner” persona and they could be buddies! If only </3

Headcanon-

Like I’ve said, I’m really bad at coming up with specific headcanons, but… I hc Joe as bi, he just gives off those vibes. He also probably has Tiktok and tried to get Sara and Ryoko to do Tiktok dances with him for awhile before giving up. Also!! He probably still sleeps with at least one stuffed animal (a stuffed dog would be very on-brand for him) but is self-conscious as hell about it and has only told Sara.

Unpopular Opinion-

This seems to be a pretty unpopular opinion because of how much people love to talk about it, but I really dislike the Mastermind Joe theory. I’ve talked about this before, but I think it’s very implausible; Nankidai’s writing is centric around character development, not the shock value of plot twists. Sacrificing all of Sara’s development throughout Chapter 2 (which consisted of her reacting realistically to her grief and was handled very well imo) would be so counterproductive and it would make the game feel so much cheaper. Perhaps Joe’s AI might be weaponized against her again or it might make future appearances, but I doubt the living Joe will turn out to be evil, much less a conspirator or even mastermind with ASUNARO. It just wouldn’t make sense, and it would honestly ruin his character.

A Wish-

I’ve already mentioned that I want the “Mr. Policeman is Joe’s Dad” theory to be true, so I’m gonna say that I really want my theory about the AI to come true as well. I really want Sara to end up going home with Joe’s AI if she survives, and I want the emotional distress of seeing the fake version of her dead best friend to be evident. Give me that angst, PLEASE </3

An Oh-God-Please-Don’t-Ever-Happen:

Mastermind Joe Theory!! Please don’t ruin his character.

5 Words To Describe Him-

Gaudy Dog Boy Deserved Better

 My Nickname for Him-

I don’t really have a lot, but I think I misspelled his name as “hoe” in a conversation once and ever since I think of him as “Hoe Tazuna.”

[sillyguyhotline]

ooh ooh for the character ask uhhh keiji

aaah ok hell yes keiji is one of my favorite characters so thank you for saying him :) (this looks like it might get kinda long so im gonna add a read more)

To start off, I think Keiji is a really interesting character. Across the course of the story he’s been one of the most consistently mysterious individuals, aside from Shin. His conflict with guns and trauma was set up pretty early-on in Chapter 1 (before Shin’s nihilistic attitude was revealed) and the manner in which his story has been slowly revealed (including other aspects of it, like Megumi’s death) has been very satisfying and compelling. He’s honestly just a really fun character to follow! I always really enjoy the trope of the typical “strong character” breaking down and becoming incredibly vulnerable, whether for better or worse, so the end of 3-1a was gripping as hell and I really want to see what’s going to happen in 1-b. Keiji is definitely a very flawed man, and though he’s physically strong and has been our “rock” throughout most of the game, in terms of confronting his trauma and the potential dangers it could cause, he’s somewhat of a coward. That juxtaposition is very interesting, especially when it comes to his relationship with Sara (presently the most distinct allyship in the game) and how trusting others is one of the game’s biggest themes. There’s a lot going on for him, which is why I fuckin love him and can’t wait for 3-1b to come out. Regarding ships, I really have a soft spot for Keishin! They’re both very hardened and world-weary men who have trouble facing their own trauma and cope with it in ways that are potentially harmful to themselves or even others- and I think that if they were given the chance, they could be able to mutually cope with it and become stronger people as a result. I haven’t come across many, but I’ve read a few Keishin fics that highlight this potential in their relationship and they’ve been absolutely fantastic. Honestly, my favorite ship in the game is Joesara, which is a ship between two teenagers that absolutely maximizes that naive teenage love, so I’m super super interested in a ship that’s more mature and emphasizes that maturity. I also like Keialice (mainly cuz I think the cop/prisoner dating dynamic is funny) but I don’t think it would be quite as satisfying as Keishin in terms of development. Also Keialishin or however the fuck you spell it (Keiji/Alice/Shin) is an adorable concept and it would be cute, don’t @ me.

Of course, my non-romantic OTP (emphasis on non romantic!!) is Keiji and Sara. GodDAMN, do I have a soft spot for found family dynamics, and this game presents so many opportunities for them! I love the thought of Keiji being a good dad to Sara- he can guide her through her grief and guilt over Joe, having been there himself, and she can help teach him how to trust people and open up more. I’m honestly just really rooting for Sara to have a good father figure (especially since her current dad is kinda sus) and for Keiji to not be so closed off and scared to deal with his issues!! My unpopular opinion about Keiji is kinda derived from what I’ve seen other people say about him on this site, but it’s that he’s kind of an asshole. And when I say he’s an asshole, I’m not reducing him to only that!! I think he’s a very flawed person who has the capacity to change, but he’s definitely done horrible things in the name of his own survival and that shouldn’t be overlooked. He flirts with a minor to deflect questions, he left Sara with the Sacrifice card, he’s been incredibly sus. And I by no means hate him- he’s one of my favorite characters, like I said- but he’s done some fucked up shit in his past and it seems he’s unafraid to continue with those habits.  Now, for what I wish would happen, I talked in my Q-taro theory post about how I think Keiji should die and how it would push Sara’s mental health and position as leader to a crucial point, so I won’t talk about it again. What I want to happen with Keiji is for us to find out that the childhood hero he killed was, in fact, Joe’s dad. I think it’s a plausible theory, but I’m also fascinated to see how Sara would react to hearing this news and how it could potentially tie Joe back into the story again. I honestly just think it could open up a ton of new plot points and it would fucking shatter our current perception of Keiji, at least to an extent.  Okay, I think that’s all I have to say, so thanks for reading if you got this far. Hope this came out decent!! I might answer the Alice one a bit later and work on other stuff.